When you realize you have some money in the bank, you need to decide what to do with it. These steps will help you improve your finances and build lifelong wealth. If you don’t already have a free checking account, open one today and start positioning yourself for long-term wealth. Before doing anything else, pay off your credit card balances, and then open a low-APR credit card that offers a 0% introductory period on balance transfers to buy yourself some time while paying off your balance.
Liquidity Coverage Ratio
Everyone needs an emergency fund, and the size of the fund depends on your income and expenses. Start with a high-yield savings account and add to it with other accounts such as money market accounts, short-term government bonds, low-volatility stock funds, and unused credit cards.
Everyone needs to save for retirement because the day will come when they are no longer willing or able to work. IRAs are an easy way to invest for retirement and come with strong tax benefits. They are also extremely simple to open and take about five minutes to open online.
While you’re at it, open a taxable brokerage account at the same time you open an IRA. You can invest in stocks, bonds, REITs, and funds like mutual funds and ETFs. Many new investors feel intimidated by the process of creating an account and choosing investments. Still, it is simple, and you can delegate the investment choices entirely to a Robo-advisor.
What is a passive income stream?
Passive income streams allow you to pay your bills while sleeping, playing with your kids, or out with friends. Passive income can be generated from many sources, including bonds, rental properties, REITs, dividends from stocks, businesses, and many others.
Roth IRA accounts
If you want to buy a home of your own, start planning ways to come up with a down payment. Roth IRA accounts and high-yield savings accounts are great places to save for a down payment.
If you’ve maxed out your IRA contributions, consider ramping up funds to your employer-sponsored retirement account.
You get the tax benefits of reducing your tax burden while building a nest egg to retire rich. In addition, there are endless ideas for side gigs to build something of your own while earning extra money, including investing in rental properties, leading local food and beverage tours, and blogging.
Real estate investment strategies
Most new investors think they have to buy brick-and-mortar properties if they want to add real estate to their portfolio. But it’s easier than ever to invest in real estate indirectly with a few clicks. For example, suppose you’d rather own properties yourself. In that case, you can flip houses, buy rental properties, or any number of hybrid options. Just make sure you know what you’re getting yourself into before you start investing.
Health savings account
If you have bare-bones health coverage or none at all, now may be a good time to boost your coverage. Open a health savings account through Lively to set aside money tax-free to supplement a high-deductible insurance plan.
If your job doesn’t offer health benefits, you have many options for getting health coverage. You don’t necessarily need an expensive policy, so get a sense of how much life insurance you need and compare rate quotes online before committing to one insurer.
In conclution
Some financial priorities are universal, such as getting out from under high-interest credit card debt. Still, other priorities depend on your personal goals. So make sure your budget reflects your financial priorities.
